self-ruling

adjective

ˌself-ˈrü-liŋ How to pronounce self-ruling (audio)
Definition of self-rulingnext
1
as in democratic
of, relating to, or favoring political democracy having rid itself of the yoke of colonialism, the new nation chose to be a self-ruling state

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2
as in independent
not being under the rule or control of another was granted special status as a self-ruling province

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of self-ruling But the real change might be in East Asia, where Kim’s belligerence and rising fears regarding China’s designs on self-ruling Taiwan had already reenergized the nuclear debate. — Charlie Campbell, Time, 28 Mar. 2026 Like Assad before him, Sharaa now faces complex negotiations toward bringing these self-ruling territories under his command. — Tom O'Connor, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Dec. 2025 In recent years, Beijing has ramped up economic, diplomatic and military pressure on Taiwan – a self-ruling democracy the Chinese Communist Party claims as its own despite having never governed it. — Eric Cheung, CNN, 13 Mar. 2023 In a meeting earlier with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, Raisi expressed support for China's crackdown on democracy in Hong Kong and claim to self-ruling democratic Taiwan. — Bradford Betz, Fox News, 17 Feb. 2023 See All Example Sentences for self-ruling
Recent Examples of Synonyms for self-ruling
  1. democratic
  2. independent
  3. autonomous
  4. sovereign
  5. separate
Adjective
  • The findings come three decades after the democratic government introduced a raft of measures — known as Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) — aimed at reversing the dispossession suffered by Black people under apartheid and colonialism.
    — Tiisetso Motsoeneng, semafor.com, 16 Oct. 2026
  • For decades, the United States favored an international order that forbade wars of conquest, upheld freedom of the seas, maintained a generally open global economy, and allowed populations to exercise democratic rights, even if autocracies remained.
    — Andrea Kendall-Taylor, Foreign Affairs, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of democratic
Adjective
  • At the end of September, leaders of several of the biggest AI companies went to the White House and signed an accord committing to internal risk controls, independent audits and board-level oversight of safety.
    — Giorgos Tsetis, Fortune, 17 Oct. 2026
  • However, the ministry’s statement does not provide independent verification of the results or disclose additional technical details about the missiles’ performance.
    — Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of independent
Adjective
  • Instead, the test showed how a human could direct a semi-autonomous platform while its software handled the details of executing instructions.
    — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 17 Oct. 2026
  • Holland was ousted in 2020, when Sarandos combined English-language and international content under Bajaria (elevating the latter to the largest autonomous content job in the streamer’s history).
    — Matt Donnelly, Variety, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of autonomous
Adjective
  • According to reporting by Semafor on Monday, the decision came after Wall Street executives privately raised safety concerns about attending the event with the event’s organizers, including Saudi sovereign fund PIF’s governor, Yasir Al-Rumayyan.
    — Melissa Hancock, Fortune, 21 Oct. 2026
  • However, when risk appetite wanes and political uncertainty mounts, foreign investors may rapidly rebalance portfolios, amplifying price volatility in sovereign debt markets.
    — , CNBC, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of sovereign
Adjective
  • Davis’s letter follows a separate ethics complaint filed by a conservative watchdog group to the Senate Select Committee on Ethics over Slotkin’s University of Chicago remarks, first reported by the Washington Examiner on Tuesday.
    — Kaelan Deese, The Washington Examiner, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Ticketmaster also faces a separate lawsuit from the Federal Trade Commission and seven states.
    — James LaForge, Fortune, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of separate

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self-rule
self-ruling
self-sacrifice
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Cite this Entry

“Self-ruling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/self-ruling. Accessed 24 Oct. 2026.

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